Serving size: Serves 6
Cuisine type: Western European
Cooking time: Less than 60 minutes
Course: Dessert

In a book dating back to my great-grandmother, there is this recipe for traditional Danish pancakes. It was the one my grandmother used to serve at family gatherings in December. In the part of Jutland, Denmark, that my family comes from, they make a sweet prune compote and add about a teaspoon of it to every aebleskive before turning them over. They are called "aebleskive with music".

INGREDIENTS

90g butter, chopped
2 cups (500ml) milk
1 teaspoon dry yeast (1/2 sachet) or 7g compressed yeast
1 tablespoon caster sugar
pinch salt
a little ground cardamom or vanilla extract
12/3 cups (250g) plain flour
3 eggs, beaten lightly
20g butter, extra

METHOD

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan; add the milk and stir over low heat until mixture reaches body temperature, about 37°C. (If mixture is too hot, it will kill the yeast.) Add the yeast to the milk mixture; stir to dissolve. Add the sugar, salt and cardamom or vanilla.
2. Place the flour in a large bowl; make a well in the centre. Gradually add the milk mixture to the well and whisk flour into the milk mixture until a smooth batter forms. Whisk in the eggs.
3. Place the batter in a warm place and allow to proof for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4. Heat an aebleskiver pan or heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add a small piece of the extra butter to each hole; fill the holes 3/4-full with batter, about 1 tablespoon in each. When the base of the aebleskiver looks browned and the edges are cooked, about 1 minute, turn them over using two bamboo skewers; then cook until cooked through. Remove from pan with skewers; transfer to serving plate. Serve sprinkled with extra caster sugar and good marmalade to dip in. Repeat with remaining mixture, adding a little butter to pan holes between each batch. Adjust the heat if necessary, so aebleskiver cook evenly.

Suitable to freeze. Milk mixture suitable to microwave.

COOK'S NOTES: My mormor (maternal grandmother) sometimes added some grated orange or lemon rind to the batter. A warm place to proof the batter is on the open door of a very slow oven, in a sunny spot or near a heater.